Poll: Rick Perry’s endorsement is a net minus for Dewhurst, Palin’s is a plus for Cruz

Texas Senate race

David Dewhurst’s Senate campaign has been airing an enthusiastic endorsement from Rick Perry — hoping that the governor’s kind words will win him conservative support against Ted Cruz, who has compiled a long endorsement list of prominent conservative figures and groups.

But a new Public Policy Polling survey found that Perry’s plug isn’t doing Dewhurst any good. If anything, it hurts him.

According to the poll, 24 percent of likely Republican primary voters say they’d be more inclined to vote for the candidate backed by Perry, while 28 percent say they’d be less likely to back the governor’s choice.

Ted Cruz and David Dewhurst

The picture is very different when it comes to former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who supports Cruz. PPP, a Democratic-leaning firm, found that 36 percent of Texas Republicans say Palin’s support would make them more likely to back a candidate, while 21 percent consider it a negative.

“In every other state, Sarah Palin’s endorsement has been a game-changer,” Cruz told Texas on the Potomac this afternoon.

Palin’s support was credited with boosting support for conservative insurgent Richard Mourdock, who ousted GOP Sen. Dick Lugar in Indiana, and rancher-legislator Deb Fischer, who bested two bickering male rivals in Nebraska’s Senate primary.

Longtime Perry adviser Ray Sullivan called the PPP finding “silly” and noted that “Gov. Perry’s favorable ratings among GOP voters are very strong, which is why he’s in great demand as an endorser and campaigner for conservative Republican candidates.”